Flight Review: Kenya Airways Business Class B787-8 (NBO -AMS)
A few weeks ago I had the chance to visit Kenya Airways in Nairobi to learn a bit more about one of Africa’s leading airlines.
And as part of the experience I got to try Kenya Airways long haul product, as well. Let’s see how is it like to fly Kenya Airways between Africa and Europe on business class!
The flight was provided courtesy of Kenya Airways. Opinions are all my own.
Flight: KQ116
From: Nairobi (NBO)
To: Amsterdam (AMS)
Flight time: 9h
Aircraft: Boeing 787-8
Pre-flight experience at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO)
Kenya Airways is, of course, the main operator at Nairobi airport, therefore it is able to provide its passengers with access to a number dedicated facilities on the ground.
One of these is the dedicated check-in area for business class and premium passengers. I am not talking about a separate counter as most airlines do, but of a whole section of the terminal devoted to this segment of passengers. It also has its own access to the airside part of the airport.
Nairobi airport is shaped as a semi-circle, or a horseshoe if you want, with this premium section at one of its extremes. You can see in the pictures below how it looks like. I found this waiting area furnished with business class seats particularly fascinating!
Kenya Airways Lounges at Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport
So, let’s say you are already airside and got a business class ticket. It’s time to head for the lounges. Yes! It’s loungeS in plural (not a typo), because Kenya Airways has up to 5 lounges at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, of which at least three are in the international departures area airside. All lounges are accessible for Business Class passengers.
I had the chance to visit the three of them to give you my opinion.
1 - Kenya Airways Pride Lounge
This is the largest of the three Kenya Airways lounges within the international terminal. It is located along the outer side of the building and has large glass panes, so users can enjoy the views of the apron and runways.
It does have three large spaces, with the central and largest one having the bar, kitchen and eating area.
When it comes to food, there is a buffet area as well as an open kitchen where you can order different foods, which are prepared on the spot. One of the interesting features is the döner kebab (first time I see this at an airport lounge!)
On each side of this central hall there are quieter areas furnished with armchairs for a more relaxed wait.
At one end of the lounge there are also some private rooms for meetings or work
Like the other lounges, this one is decorated throughout with African motifs
The lounge has its own high-speed wifi.
2- Kenya Airways Simba Lounge
The Simba Lounge is a tad smaller and located a bit closer to the central part of the terminal. It has also views of the runway and apron. What it doesn’t have is an open kitchen, but it does have a buffet area stocked with different foods and snacks.
Overall, this is a quieter lounge and it has, perhaps (but this is my personal impression) a more premium vibe. If getting a hot meal is not of essence, and looking simply for a place to relax I would perhaps use this one.
3- Kenya Airways Karibu Lounge
This is the smallest of the three lounges I visited and it is located further from the others towards the middle of the terminal. It is an interior lounge, so it doesn’t have the runway views.
It is basically a single, elongated room, with a small buffet area for food and drink at the entrance and the rest of the space fitted with armchairs. To be fair, this one is way more limited in what it offers than the other too, but it may make sense to use it if your boarding gate is nearby and just want a quick refreshment before your flight.
One last comment about lounges: in addition to Kenya Airways and SkyTeam business class passengers and loyalty status members, the lounges are also accessible for paying customers. In fact, Kenya Airways’ management confirmed to me that this is a service that has proven so popular that the airline is actually thinking about opening more lounges to the public in other parts of the terminal in the near future.
Cabin and Amenities
Kenya Airways B787-8 business class cabin is fitted with 30 seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. The seats are very similar, if not the same, to those on Turkish Airlines B777s. Granted, these are is not latest generation, with full direct aisle access and a privacy cocoon, BUT these seats provide a HUGE amount of space at the front.
You can see in the pictures below how the seat is actually two pieces: the seat itself and an ottoman (which acts as a foot rest, as well) at the front. When the seat is set to full flat mode, these two parts become conjoined forming a large bed.
Each passenger is provided with a pillow, a blanket and a bed cover, which can be conveniently stored in the ottoman without messing around with the other stuff in the seat proper.
The seat has some storage space as well, on the side, as you can see in the picture below. In addition to a cup holder, the electronic control console (the screen is also tactile) and an in-seat power outlet and USB port. There is also an adjustable reading lamp.
The seat position controls are also on the side, on top of the armrest (see the seat pictures above) and in addition to the usual commands it has also some “ergonomic” features that are designed to adjust the pressure of the seat on the lower back, creating a sort of “massage” effect.
Kenya Airways business class amenity kit
We also got a branded amenity kit, presented in an original thin rectangular container made of a cork-like material, which gives it a rather, earthy, natural look.
Here below you can see the contents of the amenity kit:
Eye mask
Ear plugs
Dental kit
A wooden comb
A pen
A pair of socks (which were actually pretty comfy!)
Food and Drink
So, let’s talk about food!
Let’s start by the welcome drinks: that is, of course, the customary champagne glass (or the fruit juice alternative if you wish to drink something non-alocholic).
This time I have to make a special mention to the bottle of water, another classic, which as Kenya Airways comes with a bit of a story behind.
This is because Kenya Airways produces its own water within its facilities at Nairobi airport! Yes, you heard that right: Kenya Airways runs its very own water purification and bottling plant. And it actually got so good at it that now it sells its bottled water to other airlines and even to supermarket chains in the Nairobi area! It even has its own brand “KQuench”, which plays with the airline’s “KC” code.
And that’s not all, because Kenya Airways has also invested in its own plastic recycling facility where the discarded KQuench bottles will be transformed in fuel, which will, in turn, be used by ground service equipment at Nairobi airport (but this is a story for another day!).
And, now, let’s have a look at the actual menu on the day of my flight.
One small thing that usually doesn’t get much attention, but I think is worth mentioning here is that the snack bag we were given upon boarding contained mostly macadamia nuts, which I would say is a rather premium treat (at least in Europe!). The crew were actually rather generous and were handing them out like candy.
And since Kenya produces some of the best coffees in the world, it was also worth highlighting it here (in fact there is a documentary about Kenyan coffee in the inflight entertainment platform!).
Below you can see my breakfast choice: fruit salad, croissant and chicken sausage with spicy potato.
One thing I noticed (it was the same during lunch) is that, rather than serving everything at once, as in some other airlines, the crew started by serving just the first item on the menu, then waited a bit for people to finish it and then proceeded to distributed the next one.
Well, this is technically not part of the food and drink section, but since I enjoyed a long nap between breakfast and lunch, I thought it would be right place to show the pictures of Kenya Airways’ fabulous lie-flat bed, which was really spacious and comfortable!
Since most people followed my example and set up to sleep a bit, the lights were dimmed in the cabin, so it was time to test the inflight entertainment system (IFE).
To be able to enjoy movies and other content, Kenya Airways’ business class passengers are provided with a set of headphones and have also a personal screen that deploys from the side of the seat (below). There is also a fixed screen at the front - as you can see above - but this is just for the safety video and the moving map.
Kenya Airways inflight digital content selection is not huge, but it touches all the bases and offers a rather decent amount of titles, including quite a few documentaries that focus on Kenyan and African-themed topics which can be quite interesting if you are a tourist traveling to or from the country.
What it does not have is internet connectivity, though.
If you prefer a more analogic form of entertainment, happy to report that Kenya Airways still publishes an inflight magazine in paper, called “Msafiri” (and a pretty good one at that!), as well as a shopping catalogue called “Karibu".
Another great meal onboard
And that’s how we get to our lunch time. In this case I opted for chicken biryani, which turned out to be a pretty substantious choice. This was followed by a cheese platter and the Ivoire lemon tart.
Also, it is not mentioned explicitly in the menu, but you can order Baileys and Port wine to drink along.
Our Take:
Kenya Airways does well all the main points of the experience (when it comes to the lounges, by triplicate!). It may not have the most state-of-the-art cabin or the latest inflight connectivity experience, but it offers lots of comfort onboard through a combination of very spacious and comfortable seats, tasty food and great service.
By the way, if you are considering traveling to Kenya or making a stopover in Nairobi, you may like also this article I wrote on our sister site Places of Charm about what to do and what to see if spending 48 hours or less in Nairobi!
